The pros and cons of school uniforms

School Uniforms in the UK have been making something of a comeback in recent years.

For many years it seemed as if school uniforms in the UK would become a thing of the past, and they only seemed to survive in certain schools. However, these days most people can see that the pros of children wearing a school uniform, generally outweigh the cons.

The pros of children wearing a school uniform are:-

A school uniform helps to nurture a feeling of community. It is safe to say that the wearing of a school uniform can help foster a sense of belonging among children. Rather than belonging to small gangs, which can be detirmental to a child's behaviour the child belongs to the school group as a whole. This can lead to pride and respect in, and for, the school, the children, the behaviour and the unifrom.

School uniforms are practical. Whether children are participating in sports, arts and crafts, music lessons or science projects, a good school uniform will be up to the job in hand. School uniforms offer practicality in a classic style.

These uniforms do not follow the latest fashion trends. Yes, school uniforms have moved a little with the times, but they do not follow this latest trends. This can mean that the length of girl's skirts or the width of boys trousers are not extreme. for example.

Uniforms do not encourage competition between children. Without a school uniform children from poorer families may struggle to compete with more affluent classmates. This can mean that groups occur, and some children are singled out for bullying, simply by their mode off dress.

Identification. A school uniform also offers a means of identification. This alone can help improve behaviour. Adults will find it easy to identify which school a child is from, by their school uniform.

In the long run a school uniform offers good value for money.

The cons of children wearing school uniform are:-

The initial cost of the uniform may be expensive. Some schools require parents to buy their children's uniforms from selected suppliers, which can be expensive. The uniform may be fairly basic or include special clothes for activities, such as gymnastics, cricket, art and football, for example.

Children may be singled out, by children from schools that do not have a uniform policy.

Some people think that uniforms are restrictive and stunt individualism.

Rebellious children will rise to the challenge of a school uniform and try to personalise it as much as possible. This can lead to a child receiving punishments, and becoming disheartened with school, for no real reason.

In conclusion.

As a child I experienced wearing a school uniform, and not wearing one.

Yes, I was rather rebellious at one phase, and used to attack my school beret to make it look a little different.

However, on the whole I think that it is good for school children to wear a uniform for school. This is especially true of younger children.

It helps a child settle at school, and feel that he or she is accompanied by similar individuals. If a child has to wear a uniform for work, once they reach adulthood, they will also be prepared for the experience.